Chapter two a bit earlier than I expected! Not all that much happening here but it'll start getting quite fast-paced next chapter. Oh, and Tai and his group won't be in it for a while now, they may make a little candid appearance but that's all. Read on~

Do not own Death Note. Really, who would think I did?

- Test -

Eighteen year old Scarlett walked out the door of her regular class and down the hall of the SIS Training Institute. She hadn't a clue in the world why the director of the SIS himself had phoned her Criminal Psychology instructor and had requested an immediate audience with the young SIS agent. She had immediately been ushered out of the class and had started walking quickly down the hall, her black low-top converse making faint slapping sounds on the highly polished floors. This was the director, who's only superior was Her Majesty herself, and Scarlett couldn't keep him waiting.

She reached the main office in record time and entered the antechamber. Stuffing one hand in her jean pocket, she used the other to run a finger along the edge of the surface of the bulletin board that hung on the wall, cursing under her breath as an unseen sliver lodged itself in her finger.

"And I never cease to be amazed that one of our best agents has no common sense whatsoever."

Scarlett spun around so quickly that her surroundings blurred, hand reaching to her belt for her choice weapon, just as she'd been taught to do for almost eleven years. The director stood in front of her, chuckling as she stopped mid-turn and tried to regain her composure, blushing heavily. She hated being caught off guard.

"I'm sorry, Big D! You're nearly as bad as an agent, sneaking up on people like that!" The big, moustached man that she was talking to let out a booming laugh.

"Maybe that's due to the fact that I was an agent once, Miss Scarlett. Please, come in and sit down. We will need the soundproof walls for our discussion."

Scarlett followed the director, often referred to as "Big D" by his agents, into his pristine office. Soundproof walls... her heart started racing as she decided that he was about to give her another mission. Even though it would be a little bit unnecessary, with criminals dropping dead right, left and center. The mysterious god-like figure called Kira was making sure the SIS had their work basically cut out for them.

As he took a seat behind his oak desk, the director didn't waste a moment. "I assume that you have heard of Kira."

Scarlett grimaced. "You would be hard-pressed to find a person who hasn't heard of Kira. Even though it's mainly going on in Japan, the news has reached the corners of the whole world."

"I know. And that is why... it must be stopped at once. People may think that Kira is justice, but he really is a mass murderer. He needs to be caught. And we need as many people working to bring him down as possible."

The teenage girl remembered the news broadcast that she had been watching that morning. Apparently over a hundred FBI agents were coming to Japan to help the NPA solve this case.

"You know..." she said thoughtfully, weighing her words, "this sounds like it came directly out of the mouth of the most famous detective in the world. L." Around the Training Institute, L was one of the most commonly used names. With everyone not even sure he actually existed, he was more of a legend than a person, an unknown goal that every agent aspired to, even though they were not in training to specifically become detectives.

The director gazed at her thoughtfully. "Maybe they sound that way, Scarlett... because they did."

She inhaled a little gasp of air in surprise.

"Which brings me to the cause for this meeting. L contacted me just a few minutes ago, asking for only one of our best agents here at the Institute. No one else either here or at the NPA Headquarters knows of this request, so that the information cannot be leaked to Kira. He needs someone who is of intellectual nature and is not afraid to get their hands dirty. He has extremely skilled detectives there, the best being himself, but he needs another type of force as well. An agent; and he picked the SIS because the Kira case is not as known in England as it is in other parts of the world. And I'm sure you have guessed by now that I have decided to send you."

Scarlett was shocked. "Me? But there are agents here much older than me!"

"I know, and we need them here. You are one of our best, trained from a much younger age than anyone else. And..." he smirked a little, "I have a small feeling that you and L will understand each other quite well."

"You mean... I actually get to see his face?"

"After you undergo some extensive tests, of course. You will be working with him and the Kira Task Force for many hours each day."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing, but she guessed she had too. The Kira case? If it was solved with just a little help from her... she would be one of the highest ranking at the SIS, and she would have gotten to meet the legendary L. Amazing.

"When... do I leave?"

"In an hour." The director stated it like it was plenty of time for her to pack almost everything she owns, because there would be no fixed return date. "There will be an escort waiting outside your dorm at that time. I am sure you can manage that, Scarlett."

"Of course!" She too acted like it was nothing, although in her head she had already started compiling a list of what she was packing. The young agent quickly stood and walked to the door, before turning around again.

"Big D?"

He looked up from the papers he had started filing. "Yes?"

Scarlett smiled. "Thanks for choosing me. I swear I won't let you, or the SIS down."

Her voice held an unwavering conviction that didn't allow any room for doubts in the director's head.

The Kanto airport was surprisingly busy for a Wednesday morning. Scarlett navigated through the throngs of people happily reuniting by the baggage pick-up with ease and set her feet for the sliding door with only a single bag in her hands. She had never trusted the baggage checks, especially when she was carrying the things she was.

The young agent arrived at the security scan and instead of joining the already massive waiting line, she walked confidently up to the very front, remembering what an older friend had told her back at the training institute. Walk confident, look confident and people won't bother you.

"Excuse me, miss, but I believe there is a line for a reason."

Scarlett eyed the security guard and raised her index finger. "One moment please." She snuck her hand in her jacket pocket and drew out a thin wallet-shaped object, opening it and flashing it at him.

His eyes widened slightly before he gave her a curt bow and stepped back. "I'm sorry for the trouble, but you'll have to do a quick security check."

"That won't be necessary," Scarlett replied calmly. "I'm afraid the contents of this bag would frighten some individuals if taken out."

This time the guard decided to take a stand. "It is Japanese law that you cannot pass into the country from international flights without a standard security check. No matter who you are, I cannot let you pass."

She leaned closer. "I really don't want to, but if push comes to shove, I may have to use force-"

"I surely hope that will not be necessary."

Scarlett whipped around to come face to face with a well-dressed, inconspicuous old man. And strangely she could have sworn that she had seen him before.

The man stepped in front of her and addressed the security guard. "This lady will pass without a security check. I think this will do." He drew a similar looking piece of ID out of his suit pocket and handed it to him. The guard scanned it and stepped back, though reluctantly.

"Yes... I suppose so. Sorry for the trouble." The travellers waiting to be scanned were starting to get impatient.

The familiar man ushered Scarlett through the next door into the wide atrium. She hooked the handles of her bag over her arm and stuffed both hands into her double-breasted jacket pockets. "I could have handled that, you know," she muttered softly under her breath.

He looked at her with a kindly smile and a sparkle in his eyes. Scarlett was suddenly transported back to a time she did not care to remember, to a stark white hospital room contrasting with the kindly old man that sat in front of her, telling her that she was being released later that day.

The SIS agent's eyes widened. "Watari!" She couldn't help but smile at the man who had rescued her and brought her to his orphanage, if only for a day, eleven years ago.

He nodded. "The very same. And yes, you may have been able to handle the full on fight that would have ensued, possibly resulting in a high-speed car chase, but where would that have gotten us?"

Scarlett smirked. "I love car chases. Although I have to say motorcycles are more my thing." Watari chuckled as they reached the curb of the airport pick-up zone and the sleek black limousine that waited for them. He elegantly seated himself in the front seat after opening the door for Scarlett.

Soon they were travelling down the busy Kanto streets. Watari addressed Scarlett without turning around.

"I was unsure about you leaving my orphanage at first, but it seems that I ultimately made the correct decision. Your name is almost as widely known in England as L's, Miss Scarlett."

She grimaced. "And it's a great inconvenience. Yes, I'm quite happy at the institute, but I do remember Wammy's House a little. Pretty estate. Rolling hills. I don't remember much more than that, though. Anything interesting happen to me there?" she inquired out of mere curiosity,

Watari turned his head slightly. His eyes held that certain look that made you think that he knew a secret that would make you quite happy if he shared it.

"All I can remember is that you made a very good friend."

The limo pulled up outside of a non-descript office building that Scarlett estimated was about ten stories high. She followed Watari through the ultra-modern sliding glass doors, through an atrium complete with a cherub fountain, and into a surprisingly plain side room.

Pretty outlandish for a top-secret headquarters, Scarlett mused, I'm almost positive that this is a decoy.

It was then that Watari pulled a laptop from his briefcase and propped it open on the table, one of two pieces of furniture contained in the room. He motioned for Scarlett to sit in the chair in front of it.

"Hello, Scarlett," an electronically-altered voice came from the laptop, addressing her. The screen had gone from blank to a stylized black letter "L." The agent's eyes widened.

"I assume that you have realized by now that this is not the true Kira Task Force Headquarters. I am forced to run a few tests on you first, due to the fact that after this I will be allowing you to see my face. I am L." The way he stated it with no fancy lead up, like it was an everyday fact, was what made Scarlett truly believe that it was the world famous detective talking to her.

"Of course," she replied, switching to as fluent Japanese as she was able to. "It's necessary."

L didn't waste a moment of time. "In what region and year were you born?"

She didn't like giving out information like this, but it seemed like it was necessary. And she couldn't lie, because the SIS had all this information on file and accessible to L. The only piece that she insisted on them not possessing was her full name.

"East Bedfont district in London, 1983."

"Your father was what?"

"An architect until he was thirty, then attending university for four more years to become a doctor when he was thirty-four."

"What do the agents call the Director of the SIS?"

"... Big D."

"I see. You very easily could have hacked the SIS's system to attain those answers, though. I will be asking a few more."

Scarlett nodded her head, quite sure that she was being watched on film as well.

"You are in a cabin and it is pitch black. You have one match on you. Which do you light first, the newspaper, the lamp, the candle or the fire?"

Smiling, she knew it would be no problem if the questions were all this easy.

"You light the match first."

"How much dirt is in a hole that is six feet by six feet by four feet?"

"There is none, it's a hole."

"How can you drop an egg on a concrete floor without cracking it?"

"Concrete floors cannot be cracked by eggs."

"What can you never eat for breakfast?"

"Lunch and dinner."

L's synthesized voice paused for a few seconds. "And... what would you do, Scarlett, if you had the power to kill someone you absolutely despised?"

Her breath caught. He's decided that I'm Scarlett... but now he's testing to see if I'm Kira!

"It would be a very complex situation," she paused, getting a little nervous. Its okay, I have nothing to fear. I'm not Kira! "It would first depend if they had done something that they deserve to die for, or if I hated them for other reasons. And even if they did "deserve to die..." who am I to decide who lives or dies in this world? It's out of my hands, and I sometimes even believe it should be out of the law's hands as well. And that is why... what Kira is doing is wrong."

The world-famous detective seemed to absorb her answer before replying. "I see. Watari..." he addressed the older man who was still in the room, "Please take Scarlett to our headquarters immediately. We have a murder to catch."

Scarlett smiled in anticipation as Watari ushered her out of the ornate office building and into the waiting limo.

Hundreds of miles away, a dark figure walked out of the rain and into an abandoned church building. Magnificent stone gargoyles defaced by centuries of time dripped rain upon the intruder's covered head. He advanced to stand in front of a massive oak door, pausing to listen to the murmurs of conversation inside. Smiling, as there were obviously a great number of people already there, he adjusted the worn Bible under his arm and pushed his way through the entranceway.

The room immediately fell silent once the mysterious man had entered. It was occupied by many men and a couple women all dressed in black, seated along old pews lining either side of the church. He quickly strode to the altar, throwing back his hood and revealing a face with pale, flawless skin framed by light golden hair. If they had been asked to describe him, many there would have called him their angelic saviour from heaven. And though not from heaven, he was definitely their saviour.

"I would like to presume that you all know why we are here. But if you don't, I will explain one more time. There is a revolution taking place in this world. Some know him as Kira... but we will know him as God. And I am blessed as to receive contact directly from this God, and that is why I have called all his supporters inhabiting this region here today. Aiding God, we will create a new world!" At this passionate display, he threw his hands to the skies, as if asking for heavenly assistance. "What will we be called? The Missionaries of Kira! Of God himself! And I will be addressed as Tai, the leader of this secret society." Finishing his rousing speech, Tai lowered his arms and held them in front of his body, an offering, and stared straight out into the crowd. The thundering applause came at once. And only a second later, he felt his cell phone vibrate in his pocket.

Tai answered it at once. "Hello?"

"This is the one you refer to as God. You have done as I have instructed?"

Tai blocked the applause from his head and felt his body start shaking. "Of course, my lord. Is there anything else?"

"Yes. Now, Tai, listen carefully..."